🌭 Who’s suing Biker Jim?

🌭 Biker Jim’s Being Sued by Ball Arena

Denver’s famous hotdog spot, Biker Jim’s Gourmet Dogs, is in hot water over allegations of unpaid sponsorship fees. The restaurant lost its stand in Ball Arena and is being sued by stadium owners for allegedly failing to make a single payment on the $868,000 sponsorship agreement. “Biker Jim” Pittenger no longer runs the company, and says he “was under the impression the sponsorship had been paid” by the new CEO. [BusinessDen 🔒]

• Better hot dog days: We had a great time hunting down Denver’s best hot dogs with Biker Jim himself last summer. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

🏫 CO Schools Continue to Combat Lead Contamination

This time last year, an analysis of drinking water at schools in Colorado’s 10 largest districts found 2,201 water sources containing excessive amounts of lead contamination. Since then, only 784 of those sources have been remedied. In Denver, that means 83% of contaminated water fixtures remain. [Chalkbeat]

🚶 Pedestrian Improvements Coming to West Colfax

Last week, the City broke ground on a $15.5 million infrastructure project to bring pedestrian safety improvements to West Colfax. New additions will include more medians, greenery, crosswalk signals, and sidewalk build-outs for RTD buses. Work is expected to last through next summer. The project coincides with Denver's Bus Rapid Transit plans on the east end of Colfax, all part of an overarching effort to make Denver’s most dangerous corridor more walkable. [Denverite]

🔎 Indigenous Tribes Disappointed in DAM

The Denver Art Museum has come under more scrutiny for how it has handled the repatriation process of art and artifacts belonging to various Indigenous tribes. What does the criticism of this complex procedure mean for continuing relationships with Indigenous groups? A Navajo tribal member weighs in. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

• Dive deeper: Denver Post reporter Sam Tabachnik took an investigative deep-dive into the museum’s long history at the heart of a looted relics ring back in 2022. [City Cast Denver 🎧]

The Making of Casa Bonita 2.0 and DAM's Latest Indigenous Artifact Issues

The Denver Art Museum is being accused by Indigenous groups of not following the outlined procedures of a law designed to place art and artifacts back with their rightful tribes. Navajo tribal member and comedian Joshua Emerson joins the City Cast Denver podcast to dig into the nuanced discussion around how institutions reckon with their past and present relationships with the diverse and global Indigenous community.